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Two Thirds Purchased Products Offline From Retail Company Email
by Jack Loechner, Wednesday, February 25, 2009 8:15 AM
According to new survey research from Epsilon, The benefits of permission-based email marketing campaigns have a significant impact on purchasing behavior and consumer loyalty in the bricks and mortar
world. The reports says that 57% of consumers feel they have a more positive impression of companies when they receive email from them, and 50% said they're more likely to buy products from
companies who send them email, whether their purchases are online or at a place of business. Kevin Mabley, senior vice president, Epsilon Strategic Services, said that "... Email builds
loyalty and brand awareness and drives on and off-line behavior... there are other impacts that cannot be represented merely by click-thru rates or online purchases." The email branding
research captured activities that may not be measurable by typical email marketing platforms, says the report. For example, 33% of respondents said they usually visit sites directly, instead of
clicking on an email link. In the retail category, 67% of respondents said they purchased products offline as a direct result of receiving an email from a retail company. In addition:
- 40%
said that simply receiving email has a positive impact on their likelihood to make a future purchase from the company
- 71% remember email communications when making purchases at the
sending company's web site
- 66% said they usually visit sites directly instead of clicking on an email link
Consumers responding to this permission-based email
branding survey said the receipt of emails makes them feel better about a company and increases chances that they'll make a purchase, online or off-line. 84% of respondents said they like
receiving email from companies with whom they register, because even if they don't always read the message, it's good to know the information or offer will be there when they're ready.
This response rate is up significantly from 69% in the 2005 study. 50% of consumers agreed that receiving email from a company makes them more likely to purchase products from the sender in
the future, regardless of where they make the purchase, is higher than the 37% in 2005. While customers may not purchase immediately, the correspondence is having a greater influence on their
shopping behavior and brand recognition. However, in 2005, 43% of respondents said it would be okay for companies they know and trust to send email more frequently, but n the recent study, that number
dropped to 29%. Respondents say, " I like receiving email from companies I've registered with, even if I don't always read it. It's good to know it will be there when I'm
ready for it."
There were some noticeable differences, says the study, between the responses
from men and women. 60% of women and 49% of men regularly save email in their inbox to refer to it later when making purchases. This suggests that men are more likely to make impulse buys while women
will wait for a deal or contemplate a purchase further. Mabley concludes, "The study is a valuable tool... for marketers to measure the indirect impact email marketing has on offline
channels... multi-channel branding can extend well beyond the typical metrics associated with direct e-commerce transactions and response rates to email campaigns." Epsilon's special
report, Beyond the Click: The Indirect Value of Email, can be
found as a PDF file here.